TOW all the hiding
by Fafsernir
Summary: When they had agreed that hiding their relationship was the best thing to do, Chandler and Monica hadn't thought it through. It was harder than they had imagined. Standing in the same room without doing anything, finding excuses to be alone, sneaking around, being interrupted... (early and mid S5, random pieces of Monica and Chandler hiding their relationship from the others)
1. TOW the closet

_Set early Season 5, most of them before Joey found out about Chandler and Monica._

 _It's just a handful of short fics with ideas I had about them having to hide their relationship. It was fun to write and if you have a random idea about that, don't hesitate to submit it :)_

* * *

Chandler grinned as he deepened the kiss and Monica groaned. He ran his hands a few more times up and down her body, then slipped them under the now very frustrating clothes getting on his way. He probably prided himself a bit too much with the way he could make her whimper just by kissing her, but he really couldn't seem to give a damn. He was a freaking good kisser – Monica's words. Well, partly.

They both froze when they heard the flat's door close and suddenly pulled away, Chandler's head bumping against Monica's closet.

"Perfect!" she whispered, opening one door and shoving Chandler in it, without giving him time to think. "Rach!" Monica quickly exclaimed, leaving her bedroom to check on her friend that had just entered.

When Joey came in next, she pursed her lips, wondering if they couldn't have just pretended that she had been showing something to Chandler. But hiding him in the closet had sounded more logical on the moment. She just hoped Chandler wouldn't be mad at her. She could hardly sneak him out of her own bedroom, and their two friends could be here for a while, especially if... Phoebe or Ross came in, Monica thought just as Phoebe entered. Monica offered to go down in Central Perk after long minutes, and managed to excuse herself to her bedroom for a couple of minutes.

"I've been in here for hours!" Chandler whispered angrily when she opened the closet.

"Hours? It's not even been half an hour," she frowned.

"It felt like hours!"

"Can you hide two more minutes? Just get out when we leave."

"What? I'm not spending any more time in there. Mr. Pants is really mean to me."

"Have you tried talking to Mrs. Shirt instead?" She rolled her eyes. "Okay, I'll make it up to you. With sex," she said quickly, gesturing vaguely in the air without really knowing why.

"Okay!" Chandler said and ridiculously jumped, happy, then silently got back into the closet, obviously satisfied. "Oh," he whispered and popped his head out to kiss Monica.

"Are you ready yet?" Rachel called from the living-room.

Monica couldn't contain a happy smile, but shoved Chandler back into the closet and joined her friends waiting for her.


	2. TOW the balcony

Monica didn't really question her life anymore sometimes, but she still wondered how she had come to this. Things had been getting hot a minute earlier and they had been kissing, but now she had her hand against Chandler's mouth, barely allowing him to breathe through his nose, and she was waiting to hear the door of Rachel's room. When it opened and closed, she sighed and let go of Chandler.

"What do we do?!" he whispered, starting to panic.

"I know, I can't believe I asked her to find earrings I already have here!"

"Monica!" Chandler snapped.

"Right, quick, in my bedroom, we'll figure out the rest here."

"I'm naked!" he said as she was opening the bathroom's door and checking if nobody was around.

"I don't care! Quick," she pressed him, pushing him towards her bedroom, but she heard Rachel from the other end of the flat and she pushed Chandler towards the balcony instead, opening the window and almost shoving him outside. "Sorry!" She said and ran back to the bathroom to take the earrings she had asked for, closing her bathrobe quickly.

"I couldn't find them," Rachel said, walking back into the living-room.

"Found them!" Monica shouted a bit too enthusiastically, hopping across the apartment to face the window so Rachel would have her back on it while speaking to her.

"I thought you were getting dressed?"

"Oh, what for?" Monica chuckled nervously, having forgotten that her excuse for Rachel not to open the bathroom's door had been that she was getting dressed. "I didn't like what I picked and..." She stopped mid-sentence, gaping at Chandler, naked on the balcony, who had just reached for one of her underwear drying outside. He disappeared again, just when Rachel was looking in his direction. "I THOUGHT I'D STAY LIKE THIS!" Monica exclaimed then clear her throat very loudly.

She was relieved when Rachel sat on the armchair, the one with its back to the window, and disappeared only for a second to hide Chandler's clothes in the bathroom. She sat on the table to face her, trying to think how she could actually get rid of her.

Then Ross entered and she jumped on her feet, running towards the wall opposite of the window. "Oh my god!" She screamed, starting to freak out a little, especially because Chandler appeared again, naked apart from something that clearly didn't fit him and wasn't his.

"Are you okay?" Ross asked, sitting on the couch and frowning at Monica who was now laughing weirdly.

"Oh my god, you're not... busy!"

"No, I'm not," he shook his head. "Rach' I was..."

"PIES!" Monica suddenly shouted. At her friends' perplex stares, she grinned. "Let's make pies! Together!"

"Together?" her friends echoed, as if not believing it.

"Yeah!" Monica exclaimed again, throwing her hands in the air.

"I heard pie?" Joey's voice said before he even was in the flat.

Monica grimaced and turned to the window again, her eyes wide when she saw Chandler looking across the street. What if somebody saw him? Oh, well, nobody knew them, at least not in the building across the street. When he finally turned, he stepped back when he saw that almost everyone was here, and Monica gestured him to crawl or sit, panicked.

"What's up with Monica?" Joey asked from the fridge.

"Just saying hello to the neighbors," she shrugged.

"They can see here? You've got to change of apartment," Ross shook his head.

Chandler's head popped again and he mimed that he was cold, but Monica waved him away.

"So, pie, huh?!" she chuckled. "Let's DO that!"

"But, Mon', you hate when we touch your things," Rachel sighed.

"No, I don't."

"Mh. Yes you do," Ross nodded.

Joey was nodding when she looked at him for some support, and almost jumped when he saw everyone staring at him. "What? I was just picturing your neighbors seeing you walking around na... you know what? Never mind," he said, turning around to leave the flat. He opened the door again. "And save some of that pie for me!" he added and closed the door.

"Okay, okay, I'll do it myself," Monica said, although nobody had talked.

"I gotta go anyway. I haven't called Emily's mum today yet, maybe she'll tell me where she is this time," Ross mumbled, leaving the flat too.

"Well, I should go too, there's... something I need to do," Rachel lied.

"Why are you going?" Monica asked, and mentally told herself to shut up, because all she wanted was everyone to go.

"It's just that you get a bit bossy when you're baking, I wouldn't want to stand in your way. And I've got a work thing!"

Rachel was out of the flat before Monica could protest. She didn't run after her only because Chandler knocked at the window.

"Are they gone?" he asked, rubbing his arms.

"Yep, come in!"

"You know," Chandler said as he was climbing back in the flat. "I'm starting to understand Ugly Naked Guy, it feels pretty good."

"Chandler?"

"Yeah?"

"Less talking," Monica nodded with a smile. "Oh my God."

"What?" he asked, opening the bathroom's door.

"It's kind of... hot for you to wear this," she said, putting her hands on his waist.

"Really?" He stared at her and chuckled. "Well, it's more comfortable that the ones my da—aah... than I would have imagined!" he exclaimed, shuddering at some memory he shook off.

"Get in the room, I'll be right back, I just need to bake a pie."

"Okay," Chandler nodded and he turned to pick up his clothes but his head snapped up. "You what?"

"Nothing. The others are just expecting pies because I might have..." Monica answered, but stopped, looking at the wall.

"You might have...?"

"Okay, I panicked a bit! But you kept popping up and anybody could have seen you! It's your fault!"

"There was a pigeon!" Chandler exclaimed, then waved randomly in the air. "Why are we discussing that?! I'll be in your room and you be quick."

"Okay!" she said.

"Okay!" he echoed, and kissed her, running for some reason to the bedroom with his clothes in one hand.

She watched him go and smiled to herself, then realized the pie wouldn't make itself, and quickly grabbed a few ingredients to bake one.

* * *

 _Thanks everyone for your reviews, I'm glad you're enjoying this! I tried to alternate one long and one short each time, and I hope it's still fun for you too ;) That idea came from a friend I think! If you have any more ideas, again don't hesitate to tell me, I'll gladly write it! (within this idea of Mondler sneaking around or something else, by the way)_


	3. TOW Rachel is looking for Monica

Chandler and Monica stopped kissing and pulled back at the same moment when they heard the door of the flat. They looked at each other for a second, his hands under her shirt and hers still playing with his hair. They stood up suddenly when Joey called Chandler. He quickly walked to the door, took a second to think of something – that butler doing his father was an efficient way to kill a boner, apparently – and opened the door, closing it right after.

"You were sleeping?" Joey asked, looking at his clothes and his messed up hair.

"Long day at the office," Chandler shrugged. "What's up? Aren't you supposed to meet with Estelle to convince I don't know who to give you a chance?"

"She's busy with someone, I'll go later. I'm helping Rachel find Monica. Have you seen her?"

"Monica?" Chandler chuckled nervously. "Why would I have seen her? I was in my bedroom, Monica's not there," he babbled. He really was bad at lying spontaneously to his friends.

"You want go help looking?"

"I'm a bit tired, I'll call you if she's around," Chandler smiled.

Joey nodded and left the flat, taking his jacket. Chandler sighed and went back in his room where Monica was sitting on his bed.

"I should check on her probably," she said, looking at the door, then Chandler.

"Yeah."

"Or I could stay here and leave before Joey gets back..."

"Let's do that!" Chandler exclaimed, kissing her without letting her time to change her mind.

* * *

 _Thanks Guest for your review, I'm glad your enjoying this!_

 _Sorry I didn't update any sooner, but I couldn't find a title for this chapter... Okay, the main reason is because I'm in my exams period, so I might not update regularly. So far I have 10 more ideas already written, and thank you for the couple of ideas you gave me! Don't hesitate to submit anything, it's really good to write about those two ;)_


	4. TOW the actual laundry

"Hey, for once we're genuinely doing laundry," Chandler called from across the room, dragging his basket where Monica was.

"I know... It's frustrating."

"I like it," he shrugged.

"We could be having sex," Monica said.

"I don't like it!" he exclaimed, then jumped lightly on the cleaning machine he was using, looking around at the empty place. "Come," he smiled, holding out his hand.

She looked at him, unsure, but took his hand anyway, hiding a smile by tilting her head to the side. He opened his legs and trapped her between them, then cupped her face.

"You're beautiful," he whispered, pushing her hair behind her ear and at the same time stroking her skin.

She smiled again and he pulled her closer to kiss her slowly, running one hand along her arm until he reached her fingers to take her hand again. She chuckled under the kiss and he smiled then kissed her jaw and neck to finally just hug her in silence, enjoying the quiet they finally had.

"This is nice," she said in his ear.

He nodded to answer and closed his eyes.

When the door opened, none of them gathered enough willpower to break the hug away, but they had already hugged, it wasn't that strange, right? And maybe it was just some random stranger none of them knew.

"Hi," a voice they knew too well sighed, clearly sad. So, Ross, not some stranger. "Can I join?"

Chandler and Monica looked up, then at each other, and nodded to answer Ross who walked to them and hugged them both. He quickly pulled away and looked around, then at Monica.

"I was looking for you," he said. "Do you have the phone numbers of Emily's family and friends somewhere?"

Monica turned around, but didn't leave the spot between Chandler's legs. "Parents and best friends or uncles and cousins and acquaintances?"

"Uncles and cousins and _everyone_."

"You have that in you apartment," she nodded. "In your bedroom, Emily told me you two put it at the bottom of the closet and I thought it was a terrible place. I don't know if she took it."

"I knew you were my sister for a reason."

"It's not as if you had chosen me," Monica chuckled, watching Ross leave.

"You know," Chandler said, putting his hands on her hips and pecking her neck once they were alone again. "Sometimes I am really glad our room-mates don't do laundry."

"Rachel tried a few times."

"Oh, and that was successful!"

She laughed but stepped away when someone entered this time, innocently sitting next to Chandler and nodding politely at the person they didn't know.

"Guess we're not alone anymore," Chandler sighed dramatically, making Monica smile.

He still kissed her cheek and they talked softly, spending a good moment together. Not having sex, as they often did as soon as they were away from their common friends, but not having to pretend they were just friends either. It was just nice. Really nice.

* * *

 _Well, looks like I still have time to post in the end ;D Again, thanks for the reviews, I'm so glad you guys like this! It's a delight to write._


	5. TOW the bad habit

Joey was humming as he entered the apartment but stopped when Chandler almost ran out of the bathroom, trying to act casual. Monica was still in his bedroom, getting dressed and probably trying to come up with an excuse in case Joey found her here, and Chandler had run to the bathroom to spray some deodorant on him so he wouldn't smell too much like he'd just had sex.

Joey took a step back. "Oh, man, you stink!" he said, putting his shirt up to hide the smell. He quickly stopped. "That shirt's dirty," he told, more to himself than someone else, then squinted his eyes as be stepped into Chandler's personal space.

"What?" Chandler asked, crossing his arms. He just wished he had put some pants on if his room-mate was about to stare at him like that. Then Joey gasped suddenly and pointed an accusing finger at him. "What?!"

"Oh you bastard!" Chandler's heart was racing in his chest. Did Joey know? Had he somehow guessed? No, that was absurd. "You're smoking again!" Joey shouted.

"What?" Chandler repeated again. He wasn't smoking. Was he? No, his last cigarette had been... whatever, he wasn't currently smoking!

"That explains it! You sneaking around, wanting to be alone, trying to hide things. You are smoking again!"

"No, I'm not!"

Chandler knew he should admit it, because it at least sounded as an explanation – a good one, that is – but he didn't want all his friends to think that he was smoking again when he wasn't, for once. And it wouldn't help him not to smoke if everyone assumed that he was.

"Let's see what the girls think!" Joey said.

Chandler opened his mouth to protest, but Joey took his arm and dragged him across the hallway. And now Chandler stood in front of Rachel, Ross and Phoebe, barefoot, with only his night shorts and a t-shirt on, and certainly no dignity.

"Guys! Chandler is smoking again!" Joey said, and everyone started to talk at the same time.

"No, no, no, I'm not!" Chandler said.

"Chandler, I can't believe it!"

"AGAIN?"

Then Ross passed money to Phoebe, Joey let go of his friend to give money to Rachel and everyone went quiet as Chandler stared at them.

"You've been betting on me?"

"Yeah," Phoebe said while the three others denied. "We said you were wearing loose t-shirts at nights."

"Joey knows in what clothes I sleep," Chandler said, then ran his hand through his hair. "I can't believe you've been betting on me!"

"Hey! You're the one smoking again!" Joey said as a defense, albeit a bad one.

Monica entered at this moment, looking nothing like she had looked in Chandler's bed a few minutes earlier. He smiled despite himself at the thought. She still looked beautiful. "What's going on?" she smiled back at him.

Joey grunted and walked to her after Ross put five dollars in his hand. "You won," he said, giving ten to Monica.

"Won what?"

"You bet too?" Chandler asked, a bit more hurt by her betting on him than any of the others. "So the fact that I smoke is just a big joke to you all?"

"You're smoking again?!" Monica said, killing him on the spot just with her eyes. Chandler gulped.

"Yes he is! He put a ton of deodorant on him, and he keeps lying and hiding in his bedroom! And look how happy he always is," Joey said, standing with his hands on his hips next to Monica.

The latter froze, looking at Chandler, unsure for a second. He nodded discreetly and she bit her lip. Chandler didn't really think when he saw her conflicted. "Okay, so I've been smoking, but did I bother any of you?" he shrugged. Joey was right, it was a good explanation, and it would maybe reduce the number of questions for a while. "But not much!" he quickly said when they all started to comment again, even Monica, although she clearly didn't want to because she knew the truth.

They ignored his last exclamation, until Rachel actually stood and took his hand.

"But Chandler, why did you start again?"

"It's..." he opened his mouth, then closed it. "All the marriage and divorce... it's just my parents all over again," he said, unsure if it sounded as a good excuse or not. Apparently it did because Ross apologized and Rachel rubbed his arm in support.

"It's not your parents, you don't need to smoke. It's going to be okay."

Chandler smiled, because it sounded funny in a way. He hadn't even realized the situation could appear sad, certainly not for him. All he could think about was Monica, her laugh and her smile when they were alone, the feeling of her lips on his, the fact that at the end of the day she was waiting for him... He loved spending time with her, he had someone wonderful – and so hot – secretly going out with him, and he was the happiest he had ever been. So, smoking? Being depressed by the whole situation? Hell no, he was so happy he didn't even feel guilty for not being overly empathic of Ross' feelings. He didn't need to smoke, he had a smoking hot girl for him.

"Thank you guys," he managed to say, hardly hiding his happiness. "But you still bet on me. And I'm gonna get dressed because I can't be mad at you dressed like that." He walked out, slamming the door for the sake of it, and his friends looked at each other uncomfortably.

"We messed up, right?" Rachel sighed, sitting on the couch again.

"He'll be fine," Phoebe shrugged.

"I can't believe he's smoking again..." Joey dramatically – a bit too much – exclaimed.

"Well... let the man be, it'll pass."

"It's your fault, Ross!"

"No it's not," Ross scoffed. "I'll talk to him."

"I'll go!" Monica suddenly said, slipping out of the apartment.

When she opened the door number 19, Chandler was pacing in the living-room, muttering to himself. His face lightened when he saw Monica, but he still looked upset.

"Come on, sweetie, you know we bet on everything we can," she said, walking to him, taking his hand carefully.

"We're calling me sweetie now?" Chandler asked, all thoughts about anything else gone when she had pronounced the word.

"Huh... Well... I just thought..." Monica stuttered, suddenly uncomfortable.

"It's okay," he chuckled. "I like it. And I don't mind the betting. I just... I wish they didn't all think I was smoking again," he admitted, putting his free hand in his pocket and looking down.

"You can say you stopped in a couple of days," she shrugged, tentatively entwining their fingers. He squeezed back but didn't move for more and still avoided her eye.

"I guess I could," he sighed, finally looking up. She smiled and put her arms around him, not yet kissing him, but stroking his hair. "So, sweetie?"

"I guess so," she laughed, leaning on although they still didn't kiss. He put his arms around her waist, smiling.

"Alright, hot lips."

"No," Monica quickly shook her head at the nickname.

"Okay," he grinned, finally kissing her. They broke apart after a while and parted, trying not to stare at each other. "We should go back there."

"Yup. Are you okay with them thinking you're smoking?"

"Well, I just checked my calendar, I'm quitting tonight because I have terrible friends judging me," he answered.

She laughed and kissed him one last time, then opened the way by walking to the hallway and waiting him there. He followed, pretending to still be a bit hurt when he walked into apartment 20. They needed to be more careful, or become better liars and come up with excuses quicker.

* * *

 _I probably had something to say, but I just binge-watched season 2 of Sense8 so my brain died along the way ;) I just know I wanted to write about Chandler smoking (well even if he actually doesn't in this fic!) because although I'm not a fan of it, I think it was a really, really good thing to the character that he kept coming back to smoking in the show._

 _Oh, yeah, right, and probably that: Thanks to the Guests who commented and 1) Sometimes I also wish I could write more, but writing more could probably become repetitive, and if I post it, it usually means that I couldn't think of anything more to write, but thanks! 2) a guest gave an idea but I'm not sure I fully understood it, so if you could explain more, I could try to write it (that might be linked with my brain which died, who knows!)_


	6. TOW the condoms

Joey energetically knocked on Chandler's door just when Chandler was putting his shirt back on. He kissed Monica then pushed her over the bed, on the floor, throwing her clothes on her. He jumped on the ground and opened the door a bit, pretending to yawn until it turned into a real one.

"What are you doing?"

"I was reading," Chandler shrugged, stepping out of his bedroom. "Aren't you on a date?"

"In a minute, but I ran out of condoms. Can I borrow one?"

"Are you planning on giving it back?" Chandler joked. "I don't have any!" he added quickly, before Joey could enter his room.

It wasn't true, of course. But Joey would probably not be home from his date, and from past experiences, Chandler knew they could go at it more than once in one night, with Monica. So he wasn't going to risk running out of condoms.

"Dude, your room's next to mine," Joey laughed.

"So?"

"So you didn't have sex for months."

"Okay, I used them to do water balloons! Ah!" Chandler said, the first thing coming through his mind that sounded at least a bit plausible.

"You what?"

"I was bored..."

"And you didn't call me?! Dude!" Joey gasped.

"Sorry, I'll call you next time. Just buy some on the way to your date."

"Do you want me to buy extra ones? We'll play together," Joey laughed, hitting Chandler's shoulder friendly.

Except that the sentence sounded really gay and Chandler chose not to answer, smiling falsely as Joey walked away, and rubbing his shoulder. When the door closed, he quickly came back to his bedroom and jumped on the bed to watch Monica uncomfortably lying on the ground.

"He left," he whispered.

"I know, I just bumped my head and I can't get up," Monica groaned.

Chandler chuckled at how ridiculous the scene looked, but quickly helped Monica.

"You said you were doing water balloons out of condoms, you shouldn't be proud and laughing."

"He believed me, at least."

"A bit too much! Do you really do that with Joey?"

"It's fun," Chandler shrugged, smiling. "But not anymore..." he added, unsure.

"That's fine," Monica chuckled, running her hands on Chandler's shoulders then his face. "Where were we?"

"I think I had fewer clothes on," he said, kissing her neck.

* * *

 _Sorry for the delay! I got caught up with my exams and my lack of sleep! I should go back to posting every two days, but I will probably be irregular again because I'm spending most of my time playing video games ;)_

 _Anyway, I like that one less than the others, but I hope you still enjoy this fic! Also, FF didn't warn for updates for a while so I don't know if you missed the previous chapter or not, so don't hesitate to check to be sure._


	7. TOW the secret boyfriend

_Thanks everyone for your kind reviews, it's a real motivation and it's awesome :) And again, if you have other ideas you'd like to read, I could try!_

 _I just wanted to say one thing: I tried to put them in order of occurrence, but I don't actually have a clear idea of when most of them happen, so don't be surprises if at some point it seems that one should have happened before another, posted later. I hope it doesn't get confusing. (I'm currently writing a longer (I think) one that should probably happen before the one below, but I don't know when I'll be done, so I thought you wouldn't mind that much. Also I really am not sure when it should happen so that's okay)_

 _This one takes place after_ The one where Phoebe hates PBS

* * *

Chandler groaned as Monica rocked her hips against him. Then he smiled under the kiss and very slowly ran one hand up her back, almost tickling her spine, in a way he now knew she loved. And soon enough, she shuddered and whimpered, kissing him even more passionately, if possible. Their tongues danced together, their hands touching and stroking and tickling and scratching and teasing the other. The couch was more comfortable than Chandler's bed, but smaller, giving them barely enough place to lie down. They finally broke their kiss to breathe, allowing Chandler to start kissing her jaw, then her neck, sucking and kissing a sensible spot. As predicted, Monica gasped, trying to contain anything louder than just that, and she lost a bit of her patience, trying to get Chandler to take his shirt off.

The door opened, but Monica instinctively tried to follow Chandler when he pushed himself off her and sat straight up on the couch, coughing. She was surprised at how fast he had reacted, and simply flattened her shirt, not finding enough willpower to get up the couch.

"Hi Rach," Chandler smiled, patting Monica's ankles that had ended up on his laps. "You want to watch TV with us?"

Monica mentally thanked him for having turned the TV on earlier, and wondered when he had learned to react that quickly. And gotten that strong, because the way he had lifted himself had been impressing. When she moved, he held her ankle tight, then let go when she glared. He bent a bit more when she sat properly on the couch to let Rachel sit next to her, and Monica realized that Chandler still had his erection. She smiled despite herself and put her hand on his thigh, which he answered with an alarmed look.

"Chandler was just telling me about how the guy looked like a raccoon," she smiled, pointing at the television.

"Does he?" Rachel asked, looking at the screen.

"It was funnier when I was telling the joke, actually. Or when there was a joke," Chandler answered wryly, shaking Monica's hand off him.

"Mon'?" Rachel asked after a while, barely hiding her smile. "You said you broke up with that secret boyfriend of yours, right?"

"What?" Monica and Chandler said at the same time, then looked at each other, realized it wasn't wise, and looked back at Rachel. At least Chandler seemed okay again – free of his erection, that is.

"Well, I was just wondering... when was the last time you saw him? He sure left... quite a mark on you," Rachel winked at a puzzled Monica.

Then Chandler gasped, and Monica turned to him. "What?"

"I... You... He..."

"The next one's we," Rachel smiled.

"Hey!" Chandler snapped – he usually was the one telling the jokes – then looked at Monica again, pointing at his own neck, in the hope that she would get what he meant. She brought her hand up to the same spot on herself, frowning, then remembered Chandler insisting on that particular spot when he had been exploring her neck earlier, and she finally gasped.

"No, that's, that's..."

"A love bite," Rachel nodded, grinning broadly now. "And a pretty recent one. So, what's the deal with him?"

Monica thought for a moment. She had told Rachel that she had broken up with that secret waiter boyfriend she thought Monica was dating just so she would stop asking to see him, but it obviously had not been a good idea. She took a deep breath, hoping that Chandler wouldn't take what she was going to say badly.

"Okay, I'm still seeing him," she admitted. "But I can't introduce him to you all, because it's just sex."

"What?" Chandler said despite himself.

"Yeah, we're just..." she stopped for a while, then smiled when she remembered her discussion with Chandler at the hospital, when Phoebe was giving birth. "We're goofing around, I don't want him getting the wrong idea."

"Hey," Chandler said, but it was a flirt rather than anger, as she would have expected.

"What?"

"You didn't have to go look that far for just sex," he grinned.

She punched him on the shoulder, smiling as he chuckled while Rachel shook her head.

"Believe me Chandler, you can't compete with her cute waiter."

Chandler laughed even more, unable to smile at the irony, then falsely sighed. "Too bad then."

"Ow, you'll find someone," Rachel said, patting his knee, then turned to Monica. "Anyway, that's good for you, great sex does wonders on you! Maybe you should try that, Chandler," she added, and they all smiled or laugh.

"Yeah, I'll pass," Chandler said, getting up. "Girls usually run away when I bluntly ask for sex."

"Tell me everything about him," Rachel said to Monica, and Chandler leaned against the back of the couch instead of walking out.

"Or I'll stay," he grinned.

"Chandler, you don't want to..."

"Hear people talk about sex? Well, I could use some advice!"

"I'm sure you're great enough," Monica said, patting his fore-arm.

He smiled falsely – a too huge smile with his eyes closed – for the sake of it and straightened up, wishing them a good night after all, grinning to himself and wondering if Monica was really going to talk about him – or that "secret waiter boyfriend that was just a sex friend".


	8. TOW the week-end in Atlantic City

Chandler sighed as he eased himself down the bed. He was relieved and happy to be here, but also frightened and frustrated. After Phoebe had given birth to the triplets and rested a bit, they had thought that the week-end in Atlantic City still sounded like a good idea, especially since their friend seemed a bit sad since she wasn't pregnant anymore. So they were on said week-end, which was great, away from New York, but still between them. The whole group together, having a nice time. The whole group, including Monica. She was the reason why Chandler felt so frustrated. They were here, she was here, but nobody knew about them, and he was usually fine by it, but it felt harder on a week-end away. He just wanted to hold her in his arms and enjoy the days away from his shitty job, without having to hide.

He sure wasn't ready to tell his friends, so it wasn't even up for discussion, but how he wished he could kiss her without caring about anyone. She was so beautiful, so hot, and did they really need to choose a place near water? Was he supposed to just see her in a bathing suit and stay put and try not to stare? Because he couldn't.

As soon as he had seen her talking to Ross, both freshly changed to fully enjoy the sun, Chandler had felt the urge to run away. Well, he _had_ run away. The urge he had felt implied more running towards Monica and kissing her or putting his hands... He groaned and shook his head. Nope. Not going there. Why was he like this? She was beautiful, yes, but he had already seen her like this. Even before he got to see her completely naked, in his bed, with him. They had already gone to the beach, or even some swimming pool in New York.

He just had never seen her like this while knowing very well what was underneath the few items of clothing she had left. And if she had already been beautiful before, each time he saw her now killed him, especially if he couldn't touch her. She was so incredibly hot and he was so incredibly lucky that he couldn't keep his hands to himself. What if she decided to stop suddenly? What if she realized what they were doing and regretted it? Not only would he lose really good sex with Monica, but he would lose her, both as a lover but also as a friend. They couldn't step back now. Or he couldn't. Maybe she could. He just hoped she wouldn't, because it felt so right and good, he didn't want to ever let it go.

He groaned again, of frustration, and straightened, looking around for a distraction. How could he just stand next to her and not do anything? He sighed, rubbing his face with his hands, and got up slowly when he heard a knock on the door. He banged his head against the door instead of simply leaning against it when he saw Joey.

"What's happening?" he sighed. God, why was it so hard? Shouldn't he be happy to be here with his friends, and Monica?

"Oh thank God! Ross didn't want to get out of the water and I forgot my card!"

"You don't have a card," Chandler shook his head.

They only had two, that Chandler and Ross had taken because Joey wasn't likely to share the room with them as he would probably hook up with someone before the beginning of the night – the same way Chandler had said he'd share a bed with Joey because they only had two beds, and he was almost certain Joey wouldn't be in the room.

"Oh," Joey said, then shrugged. "Well, are you coming? Monica was looking for you."

"Why?" Chandler asked, then mentally cursed himself. Well, probably to have some alone-time, not that she would have said that to Joey.

"She said you forgot to give her sunscreen back earlier."

"You know where she is?"

Joey shrugged again and turned to leave, but he stopped. "Do you have a snorkeling mask?"

Chandler shook his head with a smile and threw him his bag, having packed one because he knew his friend well enough to know that he would forget his own. He waved at Joey when he finally left the room.

He sighed and shook his head. He could at least try to enjoy. Or pretend, if he really didn't feel like having fun, he was good at pretending. He simply had to throw a few jokes in and keep his eyes away from Monica, it could work.

When he opened his door to finally join his friends and that Monica was standing in front of it, knocking the air, he instantly smiled. They stared at each other for a moment then she rushed in the room at the same time he closed the door, kissing even before they heard it click. It didn't actually closed and Chandler had to push Monica against it, apologizing when the doorknob stabbed her back.

They laughed against each other lips, realizing how ridiculous and rushed this all was, and Chandler kissed her head and put his arms around her.

"Are you okay?" she asked worryingly in his shoulder.

He shrugged. Maybe he wasn't. He had assumed it was because he couldn't really be with Monica, but now that she was here, in his arms, he knew it wasn't only that.

"I'm just tired," he decided to answer. Maybe it was just that.

"Sorry I kept you up last night," she said apologetically, even if she probably wasn't that sorry. The sex had been mind-blowing for both of them.

But it actually made sense. It had to be this. Things were going great, greater than ever, actually. It could be that, too. The fear of losing what he had because he had never felt more... at the right place. Or he was just freaking out, as usual. He probably was.

Monica pulled away from the hug and looked at him in his eyes, frowning. "Are you sure?"

He opened his mouth to talk, but closed it and chose to smile instead. No need to worry her. "Yeah," he nodded.

She squinted her eyes for a bit, analyzing him and his answer, then sighed, kissing his cheek. "Back to the others, then?"

Chandler groaned. He would gladly stay here with Monica. Instead, he grabbed her wrist before she could open the door and turned her around, shoving her against the door again – without the doorknob in her back this time. He wasn't really feeling like it, but he never missed an opportunity to tease her. It was way too funny and exciting. And satisfying – to be able to do that to Monica.

She giggled against him and tried to free her wrist, but clearly didn't want to. She tried to kiss him too, but he kept his face away, until her frustration turned into a laughter as he stuck his tongue out as the very mature adult he was. Then he couldn't really control himself, because he loved her laughter and her smile, so they finally kissed. He briefly forgot where they were or what they were supposed to do, and even why he was feeling so down, and he let her wrist go to bring his hands up to cup her face, his fingers ever so lightly stroking her skin. She shuddered and closed her fist on his hair, the other hand running slowly in his hair. They parted at the same time, breathless, both proud of how only a kiss could affect the other. Chandler chuckled as he kissed her again.

Yeah, he was definitely fine with Monica.

* * *

When they finally managed to leave the room, they were holding hands and smiling at each other again. They let go of the other as soon as they spotted someone they knew, and went in different direction. It worked only for a couple of minutes, until Joey noticed that everyone was in the same area – finally! – and brought them all together on saved seats in the nice cafe near the swimming pool. Chandler talked and joked, maybe even more than usual, trying to keep his mind off anything bad. Or Monica, who was sitting in front of him, with their feet touching. None had moved, and they tried not to make eye contact. Chandler eventually gave up, first glancing sometimes at her, then really staring. At least he was still talking.

She looked stunning. She had tried to tie her hair up, but some was out of place, falling lightly on her shoulders, probably because she had been in the water already – while Chandler was brooding in his room. And her blue eyes always mesmerized him. He probably should have looked away, but he didn't, now resting his chin on his hand. Obviously staring, especially because he had even stopped talking.

"Dude, you're not subtle," Joey said to him, and Chandler shook himself out of his torpor.

"Mmh?"

"Checking that blond chick, huh? She's almost wearing nothing!"

"Huh? Oh... yeah," Chandler shrugged, not even bothering to check.

He saw Joey thanking God, then turned again to Monica who was laughing with Ross and Phoebe. Rachel was trying to convince Joey to wait before making a move. Chandler was about to join the latter conversation, when Monica looked up and smiled widely at him, winking discreetly, then turned quickly back to her brother and best friend. Chandler stared for a while again, his mouth opened stupidly. Why was she torturing him?

He nudged her with his foot under the table and finally talked with Joey and Rachel, only to yelp when Monica hit him back, way more fiercely than he had.

"You okay?" Monica, of all people, asked.

"Fine," he hissed. He noticed the look of the others and coughed uncomfortably. "Bumped the table," he offered as an explanation.

It worked, and they all talked again, Chandler letting his eyes linger on Monica a bit more, squinting as if warning her of a future revenge. She did not seem impressed.

"Should I make a move?" Joey said next to him.

"Oh I don't know!" Rachel finally snapped.

"Can't you spend the afternoon with us first?" Ross said from the other end of the table.

Joey pouted and Chandler sighed, rubbing his back affectionately. "Why don't we go for a swim?"

It cheered him up and he jumped on his feet, running to the water with Rachel. Well, dragging Rachel in with him, rather.

"Well I'll go too, anyone else?" Ross said, getting up.

"Finishing my drink. And paying," Chandler shrugged.

"You want to split it?"

"Well, I'm going!" Phoebe exclaimed.

"It's drinks, that's okay, I'll pay."

"I'll be right there," Monica said as her two friends walked more calmly to join Joey and Rachel.

Chandler looked dubiously at Monica, sipping his unfinished drink.

"You don't like being in the water that much, do you?" she asked him.

"It's okay," he shrugged. "I just spent a lot of time swimming when I was younger. It's great, but I'm used to it."

"I see."

"Did you stay back only to ask me why I don't go much in the water?"

She seemed to think, then grinned. "Did I hurt you?"

It could have been sweet of her to ask, but she clearly was making fun of him. "Ha-ha. You just surprised me. Won't happen again."

She tried to hit him under the table again, but he dodged, then tried to snap his hands on the table but he reacted quickly and grabbed her wrist instead.

"You're getting faster," she smiled.

"Well, I have been friend with you for a while. You're predictable."

"Would you predict it if I kissed you now?"

"I was thinking the same, but we can't."

Monica growled, then sighed and slumped against the back of her chair when Chandler finally let her wrist go.

They were silent for a moment, smiling at each other, then she got up suddenly, the sexual tension unbearable because they were in a public space.

"Okay, I should join them. Are you coming soon?"

"Yep," he nodded, watching her leave slowly. "Mon'," he called back without thinking.

"Yeah?" She turned and smiled, and he felt his heart flipped.

"You're beautiful."

She stared at him, blushing lightly in the most adorable way, and stepped closer before changing her mind, probably remembering where they were. "Thanks," she said instead, and he grinned at how taken aback she had looked by his compliment. It still amazed him that he was able to make her feel like this.

He watched his friends, smiling this time, finished his drink and paid before walking to them. He felt a bit better. Not fine per se, but okay. Maybe he could do it. Maybe Monica and he could last for a long time. Maybe forever. He liked that idea.

Or not, he thought as he started to think about it. Now he was panicking, good job.

He pushed the thoughts away and decided to finally go into the water – before Joey would push him in. He just needed to turn his brain off and enjoy the time being.

And he managed to look at Monica by pretending to check out girls behind her, only Monica understanding that he wasn't a pervert staring at everyone. She smiled every time they locked eyes and stole a kiss when she was a 100% sure that nobody was looking. This whole Atlantic City weekend hadn't been a bad idea, in the end.

* * *

 _Sorry this one took a longer time, I could have posted others in the mean time but I wanted to post this one before, mainly because the two next are linked (just by the title, though, because I'm making puns to myself ahem)_

 _Thanks again for your support, and I'll be posting quicker now! I wasn't sure how to end this one and I kept writing two sentences, doing something else, and going back to writing a few words so it was hard to write, but I hope you liked it._


	9. TOW the hot chick

All six friends were in Central Perk, as they often were. Ross had even stopped talking about Emily, finally – it would probably start again soon – and they were just sitting and chatting, when Joey frantically tapped Chandler on the knee.

"What?" Chandler eventually said because Joey didn't explain even though everyone had stopped talking to listen to whatever he wanted to say.

"Dude, dude," he said, excited.

"I'm right there, just talk."

"Hot girl checking you!" Joey half whispered for everyone around the table to hear.

Chandler's face fell and he swallowed. He wanted to turn to Monica, who was sitting next to him, but he couldn't just turn to her first. That was a weird reflex. He stared at the wall for a second, ignored Joey telling him to look, and eventually decided to turn his head to Monica.

"Should I look?" he asked, hoping it wouldn't sound too weird to ask this.

She looked at him for a moment, then at the girl Joey was talking about. "Yeah," she shrugged.

So he turned, feeling like he had just walked into a trap and he knew he couldn't walk out of it fine. The girl was clearly checking him out, which was unsettling by itself, but she was indeed really good-looking and he was sitting right next to his secret girlfriend. He quickly looked back at the table, starting to sweat in his suit. How he wished he was far, far away at this moment.

"What do I do?" he whispered, panicked.

"Go talk to her, man," Ross said.

"But how?" Chandler hissed.

"Try saying hi," Phoebe nodded.

Chandler glared at her, then looked at Joey who clasped his back. "You go get her! You need someone, it's been months, you can't go on like this."

He struggled inwardly, and stubbornly didn't look in Monica's direction, then nodded. "Fine, fine," he sighed, getting up.

He would improvise. He could improvise. Damn, she was really hot. Why was she even interested in him? And he was so fucked up.

He walked to the very pretty girl and took a deep breath. "Hi," he said. Good job, Chandler. Now what?

"Hey," she smiled with a set of perfect teeth, of course. Couldn't she have some salad stuck between it? Anything? No? No, she was really good-looking, but so was Monica, just behind him.

"Chandler," he said, then ran his hand through his hair nervously. "That's my name. My creepy friends over here thought you were checking me out," he decided to say, pointing discreetly at the group very certainly watching his every move.

"I was," the girl nodded, and Chandler made an uncomfortable noise. "I'm Abby."

"Listen," he sighed, sitting on a free booth next to her. "I'm not looking for anything, or anyone, right now. I'm just here because my friends would ask questions if I'm not."

"I'm not looking for anything either. Just a warm body, maybe."

Chandler clenched his fist and bumped the table with a frustrated noise. "Not helping," he muttered under his breath.

"What?"

"It's just... I'm not interested in you."

"Am I not pretty enough?" she asked, suddenly taking it badly, and Chandler jumped on his feet. He didn't want to make her feel bad, because she really looked great.

"No, it's not that! It's just that..."

"Oh my God, are you gay?"

"No, I'm not-" Chandler started, but stopped himself. That was a way to escape. Not with much dignity, but at least his friends wouldn't ask. He would just lie and say he had behaved like he usually did and hadn't got the girl for a change. Easy. "I'm not yet entirely comfortable with it," he admitted in a whisper. "Please don't... say anything." And he prayed. He prayed so hard that she wouldn't walk out and tell everyone the lie he was making.

She nodded and smiled, taking his hand and getting closer. "It's okay. I've always wanted to do it with a gay man," she whispered in his ear.

Chandler opened his eyes wide, not believing what he was hearing. Even thinking he was gay, she still wanted him? What sort of comedy show was this scene? "I'm sorry, I really can't, I have someone."

"I'm opened to threesomes," she said.

"Oh my God!" Chandler said a bit too loud, then took a deep breath to calm himself. "Okay, I don't find you attractive. You understand that? I'm not interested in you," he explained, hoping it would work.

He should have seen it coming, but the coffee on his face still surprised him, although it was colder than he'd imagined. "You bastard!" the girl said before storming out the coffeehouse.

What the hell had just happened?

Chandler shook his wet hand, relieved that Monica was alone when she handed him a dried towel. He nodded a thanks to Gunther who had provided the cloth, and turned to his secret girlfriend.

"What did you say?" Monica whispered, pretending to help him clean himself.

He explained quickly the conversation and frowned because she smiled. "I've got coffee all over myself, how is that funny?"

"Well..."

"And it's your fault," Chandler added.

"You could have just asked for her number and never call her again," Monica shrugged.

Chandler gaped at her, then swallowed. "No," he said.

"Why?"

"Because you were here. I don't even want a number, I have you."

"Aw... That's sweet," Monica smiled, tempted to kiss him. Instead, she pecked his cheek and walked back to the couch. "I hope it's enough," she called from the couch.

"Hey Chandler, how did you manage to mess up that bad?" Joey asked.

He sat heavily on the couch and turned to Monica with his index up. "No, it's not enough because I could have had sex, how a peck from _you_ would make it better?" he said, playing her game, then turned to Joey and held up his middle-finger as well as his index, moving on his second answer. "And I tried, but I'm not you, so that happens, _a lot_ ," he finished, sighing.

They all tried to comfort him, but all he cared about was Monica, who was still sitting next to him, but who had put her hand on his shoulder, rubbing it to show support, and she even played with his hair a bit – with the excuse of seeing how much coffee had got in it. Monica was there, she was against him, and she could touch him, she could show a lot of affection, because he supposedly just had missed a great opportunity. Or a great night, at least. In everyone's minds, that was.

But Chandler knew, and Monica knew. One, it had boosted Chandler's self-confidence – and he didn't have a lot of that lying around – and two, it allowed them to be close in public, and Chandler loved that. It was more than worth it.


	10. TOW the duck

_A quick pre-word to say that this idea was suggested by Babatomyfriends quite a while ago, so big thanks for that! :) Sorry it took so long to post, but I couldn't miss the hot chick/duck pun in the titles (don't judge me!)_

* * *

Chandler tried not to run when there was a knock on the door, but he couldn't help smile when he opened to Monica.

"Hi," he said, taking her forearm to pull her into a kiss.

"Hey," she chuckled under the kiss. "You ready?"

"Yup, I just need to grab my coat." He took a step back and stared at her for a moment. "You're beautiful," he whispered, kissing her again.

"Your coat."

"Right," he pursed his lips, hiding a smile, and walked to his bedroom to take it. He frowned when the door opened and closed, and stepped back into the living-room. "Mon'..."

"Huh?" Joey asked, looking up.

Chandler looked around, panicked, but he couldn't see Monica anywhere, and he had to find a way to end his sentence. "Mona Lisa!" he exclaimed.

Joey stared at him, then shrugged. "I'm Joey."

"I mean the painting," Chandler chuckled, his eyes locking on the bathroom's door. Monica could only be there. Now he just had to keep his room-mate away from it. "Beautiful, _beautiful_ painting. Do you know who painted it?"

"Goldwater?"

"Goldw- Joey, I'm not talking about comics. It was Leonardo da Vinci," Chandler rolled his eyes.

"He's Italian? Does he know my family?"

"Joey he..." Chandler started, but shook his head. "I don't know, why don't you ask them?" he smiled.

"Oh, I should call my sisters," he nodded thoughtfully. He took the phone and walked to his room, and Chandler almost shouted in triumph, but someone shouted for him, in the bathroom, and he clenched his fists. Maybe Joey hadn't heard it. "What was that?" Of course he had heard it, he wasn't deaf.

"Nothing!" Chandler exclaimed, clasping his hands together. "Just the... duck, I'll check on him, you go call your family!"

Joey seemed to think, then shrugged and asked him to call if he needed help. Chandler sighed, relieved, and quickly opened the door, Monica almost running out.

"He was trying to eat my dress!" she half-whispered, half-shouted. How, Chandler wasn't sure, but it was scary.

"Don't you like our duck?" he pouted.

"I... I'm allergic I think," she said slowly, avoiding Chandler's gaze.

He made a skeptical face, but remembered that Joey was still in the apartment, so he pushed her towards the door, grabbing the jacket he still hadn't put on.

"Monica?" Joey said, opening the door of his bedroom. Chandler mentally cursed as they turned to him. "Wow, someone wants to score," he grinned when he saw the beautiful dress Monica had put on. "Where are you going?" he asked to Chandler.

"Nowhere. I'm... huh... Just out for a walk. Alone. Monica was just going out, we're walking down the stairs together. Don't wait for me!" He wanted to run away with Monica, but he knew it wasn't the smartest idea, so he waited, putting his hands in his pockets while Joey was thinking.

"Can you buy milk? I finished it today and Monica doesn't have much left," he eventually asked, then looked at the bathroom. "Was the duck okay?"

"Huh? Oh. Yeah, he just wanted to get noticed. And I'll bring you milk, okay."

"Monica?" Joey asked as they opened the door to leave. He gave her the thumbs-up and she smiled but rolled her eyes when Chandler closed the door.

"Sorry for that," he whispered, finally putting on his coat. "Do you have milk?"

"Yeah, he just doesn't know where we store it when it's not already in the fridge."

They chuckled and walked a few steps, then stopped just a moment to kiss in the hallway, maybe enjoying all the sneaking around on some level, although it was hard to find time or excuses for a romantic dinner out.


	11. TOW the Oreo

_Sorry for the waiting, I was away for a week and couldn't update! But I'm back ;) I also have other Mondler stories coming that I'll try to post soon, because I can't get enough of these two cuties. Anyway, enjoy! And as always, thank you a lot for your reviews, it really helps writing more._

* * *

Chandler waved at Joey who left the flat, then looked back at Monica who sat on the table, in front of Chandler who was on the couch. He hesitantly took her hand.

"They're all gone?" he asked in that quiet voice he often took when he was talking to her. Monica thought it was cute. No jokes, no pressure, just his quiet voice, almost a whisper, and it was for her.

"We're alone," she nodded, leaning in.

"Great," he smiled, kissing her carefully, as if afraid it would stop soon. The kiss or what they were sharing, Monica wasn't sure, but he seemed sweeter in those moments. And she liked that too.

But as it happened too often, someone was back too soon, in that case Ross and Joey, whom they had just seen, and Monica almost groaned of frustration, letting go of Chandler.

"... I told him not to upset me, but he didn't calm down so I punched him," Chandler exclaimed. "And nothing of what I told you was true after that man robbed me," he shook his head.

She laughed, because the story probably called for that, and waved at the others to join them.

"Oh you're here! Chandler was just telling me about..."

"You were robbed?" Ross interrupted her, worried.

"Yeah that guy stole my Oreo! Can you believe it?"

"... Hardly," Ross said ironically.

"Someone stole your food?!" Joey gasped.

"Thank you!" Chandler said, not really knowing how he had come up with such a stupid story. Only Joey to be that invested in it. "Aren't you guys at the coffee house?"

"We wanted to ask you to come. What are you doing anyway?"

"Just hanging out," Monica shrugged. "Nothing particular."

"Come hang out with us then," Joey said.

"We'll be down," Chandler nodded, sighing when they disappeared again. "Sorry," he pouted to Monica.

"Well, we chose not to tell them."

"I know. I guess we should go," he said, getting up.

He pecked Monica on the cheek and stood up reluctantly.

"Wait," she said, taking his hand and jumping on her feet. He stopped and waited, surprised when she leaned in for a breath-taking kiss that only left him wanting more. He answered with one of his own kisses and it soon turned into more than two kisses until Monica pulled away, chuckling. "Okay we should go down."

"Okay," he smiled, but kissed her one last time, just for the sake of it. And because he could.


	12. TOW the looks and smiles - Pt 1

_Hey! Just a quick word to say a huuuge thanks to all of you, your comments are awesome and I'm glad you like this fic so far! It's been great to write it, and it's even greater to read your reaction! I think I have around 5 "chapters" left to post, so if you have an idea that fits this fic for me to write, feel free to share and I'll write :D (or if you have an idea about anything related to Friends, I feel the urge to write about Friends lately, but the inspiration for ideas comes and goes)_

 _Oh and last thing: from this chapter onward, Joey knows about Monica and Chandler, and thisspecific idea is in two parts and I'll post the other really soon as it's short._

* * *

"Hey Joe," Chandler called as everyone was leaving the coffee-house. Joey stayed behind, sitting on the back of the couch of the coffee house. "We wanted to ask..."

"Oh no, no, no, there is no 'we'! Joey doesn't know anything," he shook his head.

"Please, just one thing," Chandler pleaded.

"Okay. Do you need advice?"

"What? No!" Chandler exclaimed. "It's just that... when I see her, I can't help but wanting to touch her-"

"Ew! You want to do that in front of us?!"

"No! No! Let me finish!"

"Go on," Joey said, crossing his arms on his chest and studying him.

"Well, it's just that... she's there and I can't help staring at her and I want to hug her or just put my arm around her..."

"So?" Joey frowned.

"Do you think it's weird?"

"You guys are so cute," Joey grinned.

"Not helping, Joe," Chandler hissed.

"What's your point?"

"Is it... If I do what I said, they're going to know, right?"

"You guys are all over each other since I've known you."

"What?"

"Even when Monica was dating someone, or you were, you two were always close. Just keep it that way and nobody will notice anything," Joey smiled, patting Chandler on the shoulder.

"Really?" he asked.

"Yeah! She's your best female friend, we already saw you sleeping on each other on the couch, everyone found that cute."

"When the hell did we sleep on each other?" Chandler suddenly asked, not remembering sleeping or waking up next to Monica before they were together. Or at least not with any witnesses.

"You were wasted, we walked on you two and we thought that you were having sex but you just looked cute, all clothed and asleep!"

"You _watched_ us sleep?"

"Yeah," Joey shrugged.

"Okay..." Chandler said, then decided to ignore it, as creepy or weird as it sounded. "So you think I can do that? And nobody will say anything?"

"Sure," Joey nodded.

"Thanks," he smiled and finally stood, patting Joey on the back and leading him toward the door.


	13. TOW the looks and smiles - Pt 2

"Look, Joey told me it was fine," Chandler smiled, finding Monica worrying sweet, for once. "And if we have to explain, we'll jut say we were cold."

"There's a blanket just behind me," Monica replied, shaking her head.

"Just trust me, okay?" She sighed, stubbornly tried to avoid his gaze, but eventually looked at him and nodded. "Thanks," he said, a bit proud to have convinced her.

He kissed her head, then her lips. They pulled away quickly when someone entered.

"I was cold!" Monica exclaimed instantly.

Chandler pursed his lips to hide his smile and put his hand on Monica's hair then her back.

"Okay," Joey frowned from the fridge. He then walked to his friends and smiled. Chandler had his back against the arm of the couch and one leg crossed on the couch, while Monica was leaning a bit against him and had one hand on his leg. "See? You were always like that as friends," he nodded, gesturing at them. They smiled at him, then at each other and kissed again. "Hey, I said none of that," Joey cut in, sitting on one of the kitchen chairs.

They pulled away again, smiling, and talked softly together, not really minding Joey, who was too busy eating anyway. When the rest of the group entered, Monica tensed a bit but didn't move, and Chandler stared at her as she was smiling and talking to their friends, barely realizing how lucky he was to be with her. She was one of the most beautiful person he had talked to, and she was with him, and they were great together, and he loved her.

The thought made him lose the silly smile he had, and he mentally told himself to shut up. He wasn't in love. They weren't like this. They were "goofing around" in their own way. Yes, they cared for each other, a lot, but they didn't _love_ each other, right?

Monica turned and smiled at him, and he automatically smiled, feeling his heart drop in his stomach.

Oh God, he was in love and he couldn't step back anymore. He had fallen for Monica, and he could actually be with her. He wouldn't say the words, he thought. Not unless she said them, at least.

He managed to catch the conversation before the others would start to question his lack of jokes, making fun Ross by pointing out the inaccuracy of the story he was telling, having forgotten that Chandler had actually been a witness to it. Monica's hand didn't leave his leg, and the thought of being both with Monica and their friends kept him smiling throughout their whole discussion.


	14. TOW Rachel is home early

_Hey guys! I'm back with the regular "one idea per chapter" deal, and I've got something to ask but I'll see you at the end. Also, I have too much time on my hands so I want to update every day, oops. Enjoy!_

* * *

Chandler smiled and kissed Monica's hair as he felt her falling asleep. He waited a while for her to be really asleep, then drew circles on her almost bare shoulder, avoiding her thin shirt as a game. It felt so good to be here, in his own bed, with the most beautiful person he had ever known. He was happy, probably more than he had ever been, and he didn't even mind her falling asleep on his chest. They usually moved enough in the night to find themselves on their own side of the bed in the morning, so it really wasn't annoying. It was actually nice, to hold her in his arms, to hear and feel the moment she was entirely relaxing against him and fell asleep.

He didn't know what would happen next for them, if they were going to last, but it felt so right that he tried not to think about it. They were happy. He just hoped it would continue, because he felt so alive.

Chandler sighed when the door of the apartment opened and closed, and someone clearly ran in. He kissed Monica's forehead and carefully got up, walking silently to the door that he closed behind him.

"She there?" Joey asked from the kitchen's counter, eating a sandwich.

"Shht," Chandler whispered. "Yeah, she's sleeping."

"I have a head start, but Rachel's coming home earlier, so I thought maybe you'd want to tell Monica."

"What's with the sandwich?" Chandler asked, scratching his jaw.

"Oh that was on the way over," Joey shrugged.

Chandler looked at him, then realized that he wasn't helping Monica by standing there, and almost ran back to his bedroom, but he suddenly went quiet when he saw his girlfriend sleeping. She looked really calm and at peace and he suddenly didn't feel like waking her up. But Rachel was coming, Monica was not supposed to be here, and Chandler knew she'd told her she'd just be home, doing nothing particular. He smiled at his brilliant – he hoped – idea and carefully gathered Monica in his arms to carry her. He was always surprised at how light she was, and he easily carried her to his living-room.

"Is she okay?" Joey asked, forgetting his sandwich for a second – which meant he really must care about Monica.

"Yeah, I just didn't want to wake her up," Chandler said, and Monica stirred. "Which is not successful," he added.

"Chandler?" she asked weakly.

"Hey sweetie," Chandler smiled softly. "Small change of plans, I'll tell you tomorrow. You can sleep."

"Nah," Monica answered, but she put her arms around him and her head against his chest, and fell back asleep before he could do three steps.

Joey helped him open apartment 20, and Monica's bedroom, then ran back to the flat. So that Rachel wouldn't see him or that he could get back to his sandwich, Chandler didn't know, but he appreciated the help – well, he actually did know. He put Monica in bed, scribbled a note for her in the morning and kissed her forehead again, then left her bedroom quietly.

"Chandler? What are you doing here?" Rachel asked as she was walking towards her bedroom.

He briefly wondered if he shouldn't have waited just a while to avoid Rachel, but it meant taking the risk that she checked on Monica and caught him staring. "She was over at mine for once, and fell asleep in front of some movie, so we called it a night," he lied, smiling in the hope that it would give him some credits.

She nodded, thanked him for taking care of Monica, and went to her bedroom. Chandler frowned, wondering if he had gotten really good at lying, or if she was too tired to ask questions. Probably the latter, although he was getting pretty good at coming up with excuses. On some occasions, of course. He still turned into a babbling mess, most of the times.

* * *

 _And I hope you liked this! Sorry I'm talking a lot here, but it's about a possible next fic._

 _Anyway, I've been thinking about the possibility of writing something longer in the Friends fandom, but I'm not sure, so I thought I'd directly ask you. What I know for sure is that I want to dig Chandler's childhood. Problem is, heh, I'm not that good at writing children. So I'm thinking about writing him when he's somewhere between 15 and 20. And that's where I need your opinion. I could go for a short story in which Chandler is 12ish and fully in the middle of the whole mess with his parents getting divorced etc. or write him as he could have been when he was younger. The other possibility, because I'm a Mondler fan (no kidding!), was to write an AU fic in which Chandler would be in high school or College with Monica, which is probably the one that would inspire me the most. It would mostly end up in cheesy fluff stuff about them getting together when they're young, but with them struggling with their own problems in the middle. So I just wanted to know if anyone would be up for reading this, because believe it or not, it's not that great to start a story if nobody is going to read it; and to get your opinion on that :) Thanks for your time!_


	15. TOW the midnight snack

_That one was another idea suggested by_ Babatomyfriend _s, big thanks to you! If you guys have other ideas, don't hesitate, as usual :)_

 _As for what I asked last chapter: after seeing your responses, I decided to write both the AU (which is definitely high school and will concentrate on Chandler's problems with his parents' divorce, but when he's a bit older (how it affected him even years later), and with Mondler, I don't think I was clear enough that it would also deal with the divorce) and short fics of Chandler's more direct reaction to the divorce, any time I have an idea._

 _Without further ado, back to the fic at hands, and enjoy!_

* * *

Chandler lay on his bed, barely allowing himself to breathe. Between Ross' air purifier and Joey's slight snores on and off, he was trying to determine if his two roommates were asleep. He could still pretend a trip to the bathroom, if he really had to...

It was past two in the morning when Chandler finally decided he could venture out. He put on his robe above his night clothes and crouched in front of the smallest part of his door, opening it in silence.

As he crawled on the floor of his own apartment, trying to silently make his way out of the place to join his secret girlfriend, who happened to be the sister of one of his best friend, currently sleeping on his couch and being the main reason why he had to be so discreet, Chandler seriously wondered when his life had taken this turn. Ross mumbled, and Chandler almost jumped behind the kitchen's counter to hide. He sighed when he realized that Ross was simply dreaming, and tried not to rush outside his apartment and into the one across the hallway. All he could hope for now was that Monica wasn't sleeping.

He shouldn't have thought that the worst was over, because he forgot that he wasn't the only one with a roommate – well, he had two at the moment – and jumped when Rachel opened the door of her bedroom. They both stared at each other for a while, until she finally walked to him and hit him on the arm.

"You scared me!" she said, louder than she had meant to. Monica soon opened her bedroom's door too, and Chandler wondered how he could get out of that one.

"What are you guys doing here?" Monica asked, trying not to look as if she exactly knew what Chandler was doing here.

"I didn't want to wake Ross up with the light of the fridge..." he said, unconvinced.

"Huh? Oh yeah, he can get awful when he's sleeping..." Rachel nodded thoughtfully, then shrugged, turning back to her room. "Good luck. And stop stealing!"

"I offer you my love in return, isn't that enough?" he grinned.

"Good night," Rachel answered, the discussion clearly over. She smiled at Monica and disappeared in her bedroom again.

Chandler sighed once they were alone, and walked to Monica, but thought better of it. He walked back to the kitchen, opened the fridge then closed it, and opened the front door and closed it, without stepping out. Now he was being prudent, just in case Rachel was listening.

He joined Monica who had gone back to her bed, and climbed beside her, putting his arms around her and kissing her cheek.

"God, I'm so tired," he whispered in her neck.

She chuckled and pecked his lips, running her hand through his hair. "It's worth it," she smiled.

"Oh yeah," he answered, stroking her face as he brought their lips together again, kissing more deeply this time.


	16. TOW the shirt

Monica smiled contentedly as she woke up, although she was alone. Chandler had managed to come for a few stolen hours during the night, and it was still going so well. They had almost got caught – again – but he had managed to flee without Rachel seeing him. She had heard him bump into something as he ran out of the apartment and had smiled – then felt sorry for him, of course.

She was happy with what they had, even if they were still keeping it secret, which meant that she couldn't wake up to him every morning, but they were both sure that it was better to keep it quiet for a while. Chandler probably was as scared as her of the moment when everybody would know, would witness their love. Not love. Their relationship. Was it love? Did she feel any different towards him than before?

Well, she definitely was more attracted to him than before, and she wanted him almost as soon as he was in the same room. Or apartment. Or city. Okay, she pretty much wanted him all the time, but did it mean she actually loved him? She wasn't sure. What she felt was... God, so weird and unsettling. He wasn't just anyone, he was Chandler. _Chandler_. They'd shared a deep connection well before London, and she still felt the profound friendship they had, but she really didn't know if her new feelings were love, or just raw sexual desire. And if it was the former, she didn't know what to make of it. What if he wasn't feeling the same way?

What if he freaked out? Or she, for that matter, because falling hard for her best friend was complicated. He wasn't just her best friend, but he was her brother's best friend, and everyone's friend. Although the sudden mental picture was weird, she knew that once everyone would know about them, she and Chandler wouldn't have a relationship simply between the two of them. It would always involve the rest of the group, and she was afraid a small fight would instantly turn into something bigger and would harm the group's dynamics.

But God, how she wanted to be with Chandler. It was almost too overwhelming for her, but she just needed to be with him, as long as possible, and... It definitely felt like love. Maybe she was just confused. Would it be so bad to fall in love with him? They were great together.

She groaned in her hands to chase her thoughts, especially her fears, away. Instead, she concentrated on preparing breakfast. So maybe she was in love, no big deal. She just had to wait. Let him make a move. Hopefully.

Rachel got out of her bedroom, her eyes barely opened, and disappeared in the bathroom. Monica smiled over the breakfast she was still preparing. The day would keep her mind busy, good.

When Rachel was finally awake and dressed, she came back to the kitchen area and stared at her roommate, a smile slowly creeping on her face.

"What?"

"Well, well, well... Someone got some last night," Rachel grinned, sitting in one of the chairs.

"Wh-wh-what?" Monica stuttered. "Why would you say that?"

Rachel gave her a pointed look, then rolled her eyes and pointed her finger at her outfit. "That's kind of a sign."

Just as Monica looked down at herself, the door opened on the three guys.

"Yeah baby," Joey said as soon as he saw Monica.

"Trying a new look? As your brother, I have to say I'm not a big fan of the style," Ross shook his head.

Chandler just stared at her, fear and incomprehension in his eyes.

After he had left the night before, she had taken one of his shirts, which he had once left in her bedroom, and had put it on. It didn't replace his presence, but it smelt a bit like him, and it was just so comfortable. She had been thinking too much in the morning to notice her outfit, and hadn't taken it off, or even put on some pants. She just had the long blue shirt that covered her underwear.

"Huh..." she managed to get out, but Phoebe entered before she could try to defend herself.

"Oh Monica! You got laid!" she exclaimed.

"No I didn't! It's one of mine, I just slept in it and haven't showered yet... This is my PJs! Doesn't mean I got laid!" She was trying to come up with something, anything. Chandler's eyes that kept traveling between her legs and her lips didn't help her the slightest.

"It's not yours," Rachel shook her head. Damn Rachel and her memory of every piece of cloth she owned.

"Fine, it's..." Monica paused, thinking. "It's Richard's!" She winced when she saw the subtle surprise and anger in Chandler's eyes at the mention of one of her exes' name, particularly that one.

Rachel dismissed her again, "It's not Richard's, he always wore plain, boring shirts. I swear I've already seen this shirt on someone else..."

Monica mentally cursed herself and Chandler. Why couldn't it have been one of his numerous plain blue shirts? He had tons of them! But no, it had to be the one with that stupid vertical straight line on the left. Not that she didn't like this shirt. It was a change from the "boring" shirts, as Rachel had said. But that wasn't the point.

"Chandler," Rachel suddenly turned to him and he blushed, although only Monica noticed. His entering into the panicking mode was noticed by everyone, though. "Isn't it one of your colleagues?"

"I-I... I dunno," he shrugged, trying to appear casual. "I don't... I don't notice this, y'know."

"Oh you're of no use! I'm sure it's one of your co-workers!"

"Wh-why? Why would it be one of my colleagues?"

"Now that she's mentioning it, I can't stop associating this shirt to your name," Phoebe said thoughtfully.

Joey was following the exchange, amused, but saw the distress in Chandler's eyes and sighed. "It's Chandler's."

"WHAT?" everyone, especially Chandler and Monica almost yelled.

"I borrowed it from him when we were living here. You girls must have forgotten it when you moved all our stuff back," Joey shrugged.

"Yes!" Monica cried, relieved and jumping on the occasion. Bless Joey. "And I thought it was Richard's! I mean, he wore other things than plain shirts. I just thought I hadn't noticed this one. I should have asked the guys. Silly me!"

"Oh," Rachel said, clearly deceived. "That's boring."

"I'm gonna shower!" Monica said, fleeing the crime scene.

She heard them chuckle, then move onto something else, and she sighed with relief once she was locked in the bathroom, clenching her hands on Chandler's shirt. She couldn't believe she had almost spilled the beans just because she had been thinking about whether she loved Chandler, and wondering about too many things. And for something as stupid as wearing his shirt!

She shook her head. No more thinking about that for now. That had been a narrow escape, and she owed Joey a big thanks.

* * *

 _So, I didn't update lately, but I've been busy with my daily writing challenge and real life, so I'm sorry for that!_

 _I hope you're still enjoying this, I sure still am, and if you wonder, the shirt I'm talking about was worn by Chandler at the beginning of TOW Phoebe hates PBS. I spent a ridiculous amount of time trying to find a shirt, for no particular reason (maybe as an excuse to re-watch episodes...)_


	17. TOW they oversleep

_From this chapter onward, Rachel knows about Chandler & Monica's relation ;) A big thanks for your comments, again, it's wonderful to see that you guys like what I'm writing! We're getting close to the end of that series, though, but I'll soon post other Friends fics! :D_

* * *

Joey frowned as he searched through the fridge. First, Monica wasn't already up, and now she didn't have orange juice? Well, without pulp, that is. He hated that. He shook the other one, opened it, then thought better of it and winced as he closed it again. Nope, he didn't want pulp. He sighed, then thought that maybe he could wake Rachel or Monica up. Remembering that Rachel really wasn't a morning person, he walked quietly to Monica's room, and knocked, just in case she was naked. He didn't really give her the time to answer as soon as the thought went through his mind, and he opened the door. Hopefully she was naked!

She wasn't, and barely flinched with the noise. Joey frowned on his spot. Chandler was there too, and they looked so peaceful. She had her back to him, but he was spooning her, his face hidden in her shoulder blare, one arm around her waist. They were still sleeping and Joey couldn't help but smile. He still didn't get why they wanted to keep their relationship secret. They just looked so adorable together, and he had noticed that all the sneaking around was exhausting Chandler. He hadn't really asked, but he noticed – and figured – that they met at night, when everyone was asleep, which meant they probably slept way less than before. He almost felt sorry for them, but they probably had mind-blowing sex to make up for it. If what Rachel had said was true. Or if what Monica had said to Rachel was true, when Rachel had thought she was going out with a waiter from work. Now that Rachel had found out, Joey felt a bit better, but still didn't get why it had to stay secret. After pacing the living-room for long minutes, Rachel had realized that Chandler was that "best sex Monica had ever had" and had almost screamed it to Joey. It had scared him, because he had almost lost his pizza slice, but now he was kind of proud of his room-mate. He had walked a long path.

"Joey, what a-" Rachel stopped dead, just like Joey had, when she caught sight of the secret couple. "Aaw," she couldn't resist to say.

Chandler stirred, moving a bit. His hand roamed on the mattress until he found Monica's hand, his eyes still closed, and he smiled when their fingers entwined, oblivious of the two people watching in awe.

They looked at each other briefly and got out on their toes, whispering as soon as they were out the door.

"They're so adorable, how are they so cute?!" Rachel whispered.

"I'm gonna knock again and enter, just make some noise to say you're awake and go to the bathroom!" he quickly said, knocking before Rachel could say anything. Something along the lines of "or I go back to bed and we wait for them to wake up." But no, Joey had already disappeared.

"Shhht!" he said as soon as he met Chandler's wide eyes. Monica finally seemed to wake up, and Joey thanked his best friend for covering her mouth with his hand so she wouldn't scream when she saw them. "Guys, you overslept!"

"No we didn't," Chandler said, letting go of Monica with a wince, probably because she had bitten him. "It's only..."

"What?!" Monica exclaimed next to him, taking her alarm clock in hands.

"Yeah," Joey nodded. "Phoebe will come soon, Ross was gone but I'm pretty sure he'll be back soon too, and Rachel will wake up and- wait." They all froze, listening, and they heard the bathroom's door opening.

Chandler jumped on his feet, gathering... Nothing, because he realized after a few seconds that he had come the same way he was still dressed.

"Hurry," Monica said, pushing them both out of her bedroom. "Just pretend you just got here for breakfast. And go change!"

The boys almost ran to the door, Joey briefly wondering why he was running too, but Chandler stopped and turned, just to cup Monica's face and kiss her hard. Joey rolled his eyes, but didn't comment when he saw the happy smile on Monica's face. When Chandler closed the apartment's door behind him, Joey pretended to have just gotten in. Rachel came out the bathroom while he sat on a chair, Monica gone to her bedroom again.

"So?" she asked.

"Chandler's back at ours," he smiled.

"I can't believe them," Rachel sighs. "Why do they hide? Is it just sex? Are they friends with benefits?"

"I don't know," Joey shrugged, echoing the conversation they'd had when Rachel had found out. "Oh do you have orange juice without pulp?" he asked, remembering that he wanted some.

She nodded distractedly and handed him a new bottle. When Monica walked in, all dressed and acting casually, she pretended to have missed her alarm, and started cooking. Chandler came in soon after, along with Phoebe that he had seen in the hallway, and Ross came a few minutes later, coming back from another meeting with his shrink. Joey noticed the few stolen glances between Chandler and Monica, and the lingering touches, and he thought they wouldn't be able to hide it for long now. Soon they'd be out in the open and he would stop keeping something as big as this to himself – and Rachel, but he was the only one Chandler and Monica thought knew about them.


	18. TOW nobody cares

_I should pretty much rename this series "Joey covering for Monica & Chandler" ;)_

 _Reveriemare suggested Monica & Chandler getting caught asleep in the barcalounger, and I quickly wrote this short one for that. I'm sorry I didn't write more but I haven't updated in a while and I had to put this one before the next one because it's... well, the first part of the end (yes, it's in more than one part, because why the hell not.) Anyway, thank you for your suggestion! (And I know it's two in row where they're sleeping, but hey, leave me alone, they're adorable and tired.)_

 _If you guys have other ideas, now is your last chance! I'm kidding, I can always add chapters later and warn about when it occurs. It's too fun to write this to stop for technical details._

 _Without further ado, I hope you still enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy writing it._

* * *

Chandler blinked a few times as he woke up, then decided to close his eyes again, snuggling closer to the warm body in his arms. Where was he?

His own apartment, probably. That was where he had been in the last thing he remembered. He had been hanging out with Monica, but their sneaking around meant that they both weren't up for much, so they had decided to stay home. They had fallen asleep in the apartment, apparently.

Chandler froze when he realized that there were voices. There were voices in the same room, and they weren't in his bed.

Where were his hands? Was Monica's lower back too low for his hand to be according to her brother? Was lower than the lower back too low...? It probably was. But could he just say he had moved in his sleep? Why was he even sleeping with Monica in his barcalounger in the first place?

He didn't think his sleepy mind could find that many answers in a short amount of time. Should he just pretend to still be sleeping?

Monica didn't leave him much of a choice as she stirred, her hands caressing his chest, and it never could pass as a "in-my-sleep" movement in Chandler's mind.

He mumbled something until it finally turned into Monica's name, and she responded as equally awake – by whimpering and burying her face in his neck.

"Hey sleepyheads," Joey's voice said, his grin obvious.

Monica straightened suddenly, the only reason she didn't fall being Chandler who grabbed her upper arms with incredibly fast reflexes.

"Wh-what are you guys doing here?!" she stuttered, looking at everyone in the room. _Everyone_ was here.

"Hanging out," Joey shrugged from his stool, eating at the kitchen's counter.

Phoebe was in Joey's chair, playing with Chandler's now that the couple was awake, Ross was on the other kitchen's stool, half turned to them, and Rachel was leaning against the kitchen's counter, grinning.

"Did you two sleep well?" Rachel said smugly.

"Was the movie _that_ boring?" Ross asked once he had swallowed the piece of pizza he was chewing.

"What movie?" Monica asked, standing and looking around frenetically, as if searching for something – Chandler knew she was trying to come up with a good lie.

"I wonder how Joey didn't even shake you so you would watch," Phoebe said thoughtfully. "Last time, I fell asleep while watching Die Hard 2 in _my_ apartment. I was alone and next thing I knew, this guy was shaking the hell out of me so I'd wake up and watch!" She sounded outraged, but ended her sentence by blowing a kiss at Joey and winking at him to show she wasn't pissed. He answered with a thumb up.

"I really had to go to that audition, or I would have kicked their asses awake," Joey nodded seriously.

Monica and Chandler exchanged a confused glance, but decided to look like they knew what their friends were talking about. The conversation kept going on Joey's love for the Die Hard movies, and they didn't even mention Monica and Chandler sleeping in the same chair.

Chandler rubbed his neck, wincing inwardly as he realized that sleeping in the barcalounger wasn't the most pleasant thing ever. Not that he would stop, because he loved sleeping with Monica, no matter how uncomfortable it was.

He still wasn't sure what had happened, but they probably owed another big thanks to Joey. And he owed him money, because every time he saved their asses, Chandler had told him he'd give him a ten. It worked out well for everyone that way.


	19. TOW Chandler is in love – Pt 1

_As I said in the previous chapter, this idea is in more than one part (actually, three) even though it was originally not supposed to be more than what is below. I'll explain later why I extended the idea ;)_

 _I hope you'll enjoy this, a big thanks to the readers & reviewers for your support. This fic wouldn't be that long without you!_

* * *

"This party's greaaaaat," Chandler exclaimed, putting his arms around Joey and Monica who were talking with Ross. He didn't even remember why they were having a party at Monica's in the first place, but he had drunk too much. That was pretty much all he knew. Oh, and Monica looked really hot. "Hey," he said to Joey. "Monica's hot," he grinned, then realized he had been talking to Monica and not his best friend. He shushed her, although she hadn't said anything, and repeated the sentence to Joey.

"Hey, back off," Ross said.

"Don't worry, you look good too," Chandler said, taking his arm away from Joey's shoulders to put his hand on Ross' chest and pat him. "Oh. Have you been working out?" And he suddenly started to fall down, but Monica helped him steady himself, and he just walked away as if he hadn't been talking to them.

He sank on the couch between two couples kissing, and squinted his eyes at Rachel when she sat on the table in front of him.

"I have beautiful friends," he grinned.

"Yes you do," she said, patting his knee. "Chandler, you should probably go sleep."

"But the party's not over," he pouted. "Shhhhhht," he quickly added when she was about to talk, putting his hand on her mouth, or at least her face. "Don't spoil the fun! It's fuuun..." And he got up and walked away again, leaning against a wall when he couldn't stand straight.

Right, he had been drinking a bit too much. Alright, way too much. It wasn't his fault, though. The day had been long, he hadn't been alone with Monica since the day before, and he missed her. Well, she was here and talking to him, but they were together as friends and he wanted more time together as a couple. Always more. It was so nice. And she was really, _really_ hot. And great in bed. And so adorable. And, God, her eyes were so beautiful. And her smile. Chandler loved her smile. Oh, right, he loved her, he thought with a chuckle.

He loved her. He should tell her that. She deserved to know, after all. He had already slipped once, but they hadn't mentioned it afterwards. He smiled, proud of himself, and walked to Monica, hugging her from behind and kissing her neck.

"Chandler, get off!"

Not Monica.

"Sorry Pheebs," he mumbled under his breath and turned. He looked at his friend again, frowning at her blond hair and wondering why he had thought it was Monica. Meh, who cared.

"Chandler," a voice said, and he yelped and turned, Monica putting a careful hand on his arm. "Why don't you sit for a while?"

"I was looking for youuu," he smiled, following her to the armchair. "Hey don't tell anyone but I have a secret."

"Which one?" she asked, taking care of him and sitting on the armrest so he wouldn't stand again and wander randomly in the apartment.

He grinned and managed to put his hand on the back of her neck and draw her down. "I love you," he whispered in her ear, giggling when she froze.

"Chandler, you're drunk," she stuttered, obviously at loss of words.

"But it's truuue," he pouted, then drew her down again to kiss her passionately.

He couldn't get enough of her, his hands running through her dark hair. He loved her hair. He didn't stop the kiss, smiling when she responded despite herself. He stroked her face and neck and slowly ran a hand down her back.

"Wow, wow, guys!" Joey's voice cut them, as well as his hands parting them away. "Are you crazy? Don't blow it off now by being stupid and drunk."

"Hey Joey, I love her," Chandler chuckled, his hand still on Monica's back, his fingers drawing circles.

"That's great, dude, but you're also drunk," Joey patted him on the shoulder, knowing he talked too much and touched too much when he had been drinking. "So no more kissing."

"Oh he's jealous," Chandler said, bringing his free hand to his cheek. "I love you too man."

And he kissed Joey, even if Joey straightened up quickly.

"Okay, take him home," Joey quickly said to Monica who laughed and nodded.

Chandler refused, pulling Monica on his lap instead, but she was stronger than him and managed to get up. She whispered something into his ear to motivate him and he jumped on his feet, grinning.

"Hey Rach', I'm bringing a girl home!" he said to Rachel as they were walking by her, and she laughed with a knowing expression. He frowned at that, but Monica was already dragging him through the hallway, into apartment 19. Empty apartment 19.

"Alone, at last!" he exclaimed proudly – and a bit over-dramatically – almost slamming the apartment's door behind him. He put his hands on his hips and walked to Monica. "My bedroom's this way," he chuckled, showing his bedroom.

"I know," she nodded and dragged him into it, letting him kiss her neck and battle with her bra as she took his pants and shirt away, leaving him in his boxers and undershirt. She pushed him on the bed while he still hadn't figured out her bra, and he fell with another pout.

"I don't like your bra," he said.

"I'm not wearing any," she finally admitted, and the look on his face was hilarious.

"Oh, my!" he said, both surprised and incredibly turned on.

"Chandler, I'm not having sex with you while you're still drunk."

"Why not? I'm awesome when I'm drunk!"

"I'm not sure about that. And you never remember anything."

"Oh, but _you_ will," he grinned, getting on his knees and pulling her close, his hands stroking her legs.

She pushed him away and pulled the sheets over him, smiling because he looked like a child begging. Well, for sex in that case, which took away all the cuteness and innocence of a child, but still. As she started to walk away, he sat again on his bed, clearing his throat.

"Can you..."

"No."

"Just stay...?" he finished, looking away.

She paused and finally smiled, climbing next to him. "Okay," she said. He lay back, enjoying her closeness and cuddling close. "Aw."

He shifted a bit as an answer and kissed her shoulder then closed his eyes, accepting to go to sleep. He hoped he had gained some cute points with that. Or he had just acted like a fool by getting drunk... Well, she was right, he probably wouldn't remember it anyway.


	20. TOW Chandler is in love – Pt 2

_Here's part 2! Okay I have nothing related to the chapters to say... But thanks to_ Langford90 _for your comment, I'm glad you liked the last one!_

 _Anyway, just a quick word to say that I **should** be able to post normally and you won't notice it, but I might not have the time. Real life is kicking in and I'm moving out for the year (roughly), in an entire other country, so I'll be pretty busy in the next week. Now, if you have tips for someone living in the UK, now's your time to shine and share your wisdom with me!_

 _I'm done taking your time, enjoy! ;) It's not much about Chandler or Monica having to hide their relationship, but I'm sure nobody will mind._

* * *

Chandler was pacing in the living-room, willing for someone, _anyone_ , to come into the apartment. Even Rachel or Phoebe, he would talk and never stop. Hell, even Ross! He just needed to talk to someone.

The door opened and Chandler ran to the person.

"Joey!" he cried out, dragging the man inside. "Thank God!"

"Wh-what? What's happening?"

"I think I fucked up! Again!" Chandler exclaimed, his arms flailing in panic.

Joey thought about pretending to know what was happening, but he just shook his head. "Dude, what are you talking about?"

"Monica!"

Joey's face cleared and he growled. Chandler had talked to him a couple of times about how he had messed things up with Monica, and it had never turned out to be true, so he started to be heavily annoyed. Chandler just tended to panic a lot for nothing.

"I'm sure it's okay," he shrugged, sinking in his barcalounger.

"What if it's not?!"

"Okay, what did you do?" Joey asked, because as much as Chandler could be a pain in the ass, he still was his best friend, and he seemed to really need someone to talk to.

"Remember how I drank way too much last night?" Joey nodded. "Yeah, well, for some reason, so do I."

Joey frowned, trying to remember if Chandler had done something wrong while being drunk. "Did you sleep with someone else?" he tried, because that was what he would have probably done.

"What? No! No, I talked too much. I told Monica that I loved her."

He looked pained by that fact, but Joey still couldn't quite grasp the problem. "So what? Pretend you don't remember, or put it on the alcohol."

"That's the problem!" Chandler said, chewing his index and thumb. At Joey's confused look, he took a deep breath. "Joe, I _am_ in love with her. And it's the second time I accidentally say it and I... I think I want to tell her? But what if she doesn't love me? Why would she?" he chuckled nervously.

"Wowowow," Joey said, putting his hand up to stop Chandler. "You _love_ her?"

He knew they both cared deeply for the other and that they had stepped way beyond the line of friendship already, but he hadn't realized that Chandler had genuinely fallen for Monica. Especially because Chandler usually fell in love in less than a week, so Joey had just concluded that they wouldn't be in love – he hadn't thought long enough about it to determine what they could be if they were neither friends nor in love. It was weird to see him like this again.

"Yeah," Chandler shrugged, as if falling for one of your best friends was the next natural thing to do. "I mean... Well, yeah. She's just so... wonderful, you know? Everything is going so great, and she's so beautiful. I never went out with someone like this! Some were really good-looking, others were... well, there were others, but have you ever seen me even talking with someone that beautiful? And-and the way we can talk for hours, and it's never awkward. I know her more than I know myself sometimes, and I like that feeling, for once. It just feels like I'm doing good for once, and it's... it just makes sense. And, I mean, _the sex_ , dude. It's like, the best, but better? I just want to do anything to please her, and nothing is uncomfortable. Even out of the bedroom, I seriously just want her to be the happiest person alive and... I want her to be happy thanks to me. I want to be the one that makes her the happiest."

Joey cleared his throat when Chandler stared at the wall, his mind wandering elsewhere. "It was really more of a yes-no question..."

"Yes, Joey, I love her. And I can't even really hold it back anymore. So please, _help me_?" he pouted.

"Okay okay, I get it. But help you? How?"

"Come on, it's Monica! I mean, _Monica_ ," Chandler said, almost like a child. "I told her twice, and it was a disaster both times. I just want one official first time that would be great. But if she doesn't love me back, then what do I do?"

Joey thought for a second, then shrugged."You're not proposing, just say it when you feel like saying it." What was the big deal anyway?

"And if it's awkward because she doesn't love me?"

"Then tell her when you can pretend you didn't. Like... before she climaxes!"

"Are you... telling me to say that I love her while we're having sex?"

"Well, that way you can say it, and if she answers, good for you. If she doesn't, you can both just do as if you hadn't talked."

"Isn't it kind of like the two previous times?"

"She's still with you, isn't she?" Joey shrugged.

"Okay..." Chandler said, then seemed more determined as he thought about it. "Okay! It's perfect! I can tell her and then back off! I can be a coward!" he exclaimed excitedly.

Joey stared at him for a second, then put his fists in the air. "Yoo-ooh," he said, falsely excited.

Chandler didn't seem to mind the slightest, already trying to plan when he would tell her. Joey shook his head, but smiled. He had been afraid that it would end up like Ross and Rachel, but he had the feeling that it wouldn't now. He had never seen Chandler so worried about a relationship and at the same time so invested in it – although he was always worried and devoted. He sincerely hoped his friends would work out, both for Chandler but also Monica's sake. It was small and you had to guess it, but Joey had noticed how much happier the two looked since he had learned about their relationship.

They were good for each other, Chandler even seemed to panic a bit less about committing – he panicked more for other things, though – and Monica looked willing to let him come to terms with any big steps. Joey was sure that she loved him too, but that she had been afraid of the same thing. She didn't want him to run away either. Joey just wished that they would both see and admit to themselves that the other wasn't going anywhere.


	21. TOW Chandler is in love – Pt 3

_Yay! I'm able to post as usual ;)_

 _I'm very tired, and I feel hecking lonely in a foreign country, but at least I'm settled. And alive ;)_

 _Thanks the Guest, who commented last chapter. And thanks to_ reveriemare _who suggested an idea that extended the first part into two more parts ;) And, even if it looks like it's the end of this fic, I actually have two more small chapters! Yoo-ooh!_

* * *

Monica looked up when Chandler entered. They smiled automatically at each other and met in the kitchen for a passionate kiss. Before long, she chuckled against his lips and he pulled back, pouting.

"You're supposed to laugh when I do something funny, that's a bit hurtful there."

She laughed, patting his chest. "I just remembered something."

"Was it something irresistibly funny that I said?" he grinned.

She patted him again, on the cheek this time. "You wish," she grinned, then walked to the couch. "I was talking to Joey and he said interesting things."

Chandler paled instantly and almost ran next to the couch. "What did he say?!"

"Oh, you know, we simply talked about some things... things that you two talked about a couple of days ago." He looked nervous and walked to the window. She chose to ignore his odd reaction. "'The best, but better'? That's a lot." She was trying not to smile – but failed – as she stood and walked to him.

"Oh," he said, looking down at her hands playing with his top. "Oh!" He seemed to relax. "Well, it's... huh... well."

She laughed at his babbling mess, and stepped closer. "So, is it true?"

She had been talking casually with Joey when they had started talking about Chandler and Monica's relationship. It had felt good, talking about her couple to one of her closest friends. Then he had slipped and told her about his discussion with Chandler. She knew nothing about how much Chandler loved her and wanted to tell her – initially, Joey had almost spilled the beans about this, but he had settled for another confession – but learning that she was the best sex Chandler had experienced, too, oddly felt really good. She understood why he had danced and beamed so ridiculously when he had learned that he was the best she'd ever had in bed. It was more flattering than she had expected.

"Of course it is," Chandler admitted, snapping her back to the present. He looked at her as if it were obvious. "I thought you knew."

"I didn't," she shook her head, kissing him.

"Well, you are. You're better than... some of my craziest dreams," he admitted, concentrating to think of things to compare her performance to.

"I am?" she asked, her cheeks hurting at how much she was smiling. Maybe she was blushing a bit, too. It amazed her how the simplest gesture and words from Chandler could now affect her.

"Yes," he whispered. "Mon', you're the most amazing thing that happened to me, and you're definitely the best sex I've ever had."

She was blushing, no doubt about it. He was so sweet while saying this. Before she knew it, she outwardly expressed her joy – one more thing she was the best at! The fact that her boyfriend had ranked her the best at sex was even more satisfying than simply winning.

He chuckled, smiling adorably, and she grinned as she thought of something. "Ever dreamed of doing it against the window?"

Chandler pretended to think about it, putting his index on his chin and his other hand on his hip, but he didn't even manage to hold it for long, muttering a "hell yeah," as he could barely breathe.

He reached for her top, quickly pushing it off her shoulders as her own hands moved by themselves, unbuttoning his pants. They briefly stopped moving to kiss passionately, then continued undressing the other as they kissed.

* * *

Chandler almost told her that he loved her that time. She was unbelievably hot, they were taking risks and could probably be seen, but it was way better than anything Chandler could have dreamed about. He was so high on desire and lost in lust that he couldn't manage much more than grunts and inarticulate sentences or words which he didn't even seem to finish.

In the end, he never got to tell her that he loved her the way he had planned to do it – not that it had been a great plan. Like the two previous times, he blurted it out without thinking, but strongly believing in the words. And she had said them back! It hadn't been the perfect setting – he had just kissed Phoebe and they were in front of almost everyone, for Christ's sake – but it was out, and it felt incredibly good. He made up for that first time by telling her again later, once they were alone. She looked as happy as he felt about it.


	22. TOW the questions

_Time flies way too quickly, and I didn't realize I hadn't updated last week. Sorry for that! I'll soon post the last chapter (which is way shorter than this one, don't expect an awesome last update, it's just fun) I hope you still enjoy this story :)_

* * *

Monica pulled away quickly from Chandler's lips, ready to come up with some random and probably unbelievable excuse. She sighed, relieved, when the door opened on Joey and Rachel, and stepped closer to Chandler again. He smiled sweetly at her and put his hands on her waist while she snaked her arms around his neck and kissed him again, unable to resist longer. It was awful, and she didn't like being that way in front of her friends, but they probably were going to see more of that in the future, they'd have to get used to it. And Chandler and she were in that perfect, ideal place, having just said that they loved each other. Well, that, and they still couldn't quite keep their hands off each other.

"Aw you're so adorable," Rachel said, her hand once again on her heart. Monica didn't know for how long she would keep doing that, but it was great to see her reacting that way.

"I know," Monica said and turned to Chandler when he chuckled softly against her hair.

"So," Rachel smiled, sitting on the couch and clearly inviting them to sit next to her. "Can we ask you guys some questions now?"

Chandler frowned, tearing his gaze away from Monica's eyes, and was about to move but Joey sat next to Rachel who sent daggers with her eyes. He didn't realize, smiling up at his friends who shrugged and sat on the armchair to be together.

"What kind of questions?" Monica asked, sitting half on the chair, half on Chandler. He smiled and put his hand on her thigh, his other arm around her waist.

"Yes, Mom, I'm vaccinated and we're over the sexual majority and both consenting," he said, nodding to Rachel who rolled her eyes.

Phoebe walked in before anyone could react verbally. "Oh! Everyone on the couch, okay! Get a room you two," she exclaimed, pointing at Chandler and Monica. "Oh, you're not doing anything."

"No, Pheebs."

"We were about to ask questions about them, do you have some?"

"Oh yeah! What did you answer?"

"Nothing. Well I answered 'what did you answer?' now!" Joey chuckled at Chandler's joke and Monica allowed herself a smile. "What do you want to know?"

"Well, everything! Like who... what... when... how did you... what happened... what w-"

"Okay, Rachel, take a deep breath," Phoebe said to Rachel who wanted to ask so many questions she couldn't finish a single one.

"What about what you asked me when you found out?" Joey shrugged, not really interested in the conversation.

"Okay, when exactly did this start?"

"London," Chandler nodded, thoughtful.

"The night before Ross got... 'married'," Monica added.

"Who initiated it?"

Chandler grinned proudly while Monica played with one of his shirt's buttons. "I did," she admitted.

The girls gasped, smiling. "So, how was it?"

"It must have been so awkward," Phoebe chuckled.

"Actually, it wasn't," Monica smiled, looking at Chandler. She put her head on his shoulder. "It felt... right. And, long story short, we kept finding excuses to spend time alone, until we talked about it and decided to officially try it out. Well, officially... between us."

There was a long silence until Rachel sighed. "I can't believe you were doing this right under our noses and we didn't notice."

"We were getting pretty bad at lying," Chandler said. "I can't believe you thought we really needed to do laundry that much, though."

"With Monica's obsessive cleaning? I thought it was normal," Rachel shrugged.

"Hey!" Monica exclaimed, but everyone nodded or agreed, so she pouted. Chandler smiled and kissed her hair to show minimal support.

"Okay, but did one of you have a crush or something? Like, Chandler, were you longing for Monica since you've met her?"

"What?" Chandler frowned. "No, I wasn't."

"Weren't you attracted by Monica before?"

He studied Monica in his arms, then Phoebe who had asked the last question. "Attracted? Yeah, she's beautiful. But I never really thought about more. We're best friends-" he stopped when Joey and Rachel gasped at the same time. "She's my best female friend and I'm her best male friend, and I was fine with that."

"Didn't you ask her out?" Joey asked.

"What?"

"You know, that trip to the beach, you kept asking her, but then you didn't seem to be together so I thought she had turned you down and I didn't want you to whine too much so I let it go."

"I wasn't..." Chandler started, then remembered his attempts at getting Monica to admit that he was boyfriend material, and smiled. "Okay, I see. I was just joking because she seemed so eager to tell me that she wouldn't go out with me... Okay that sounds weird, but I was just teasing, trying to make her laugh."

"And that's not having a crush?" Rachel said pointedly.

"No," Chandler frowned. "That's being a friend. I swear, I never really thought about actually dating Monica until, huh, until we kissed. She was just my very good and close friend, Monica. Hot? Sure. But did I ever picture myself dating her? Have you seen me?" he smiled, squeezing Monica's waist to reassure her that he was joking.

"So you've _never_ felt anything that was more than friendship?" Phoebe asked.

"I don't know," he shrugged.

"Now you're saying you did!"

"I said I didn't know! I mean, I don't think I did, but it's a fine line between deep friendship and having a crush, I guess...? But I've never drooled on her and longed for a date or anything."

"What about you, Monica?"

"Well, same thing, I guess. I mean, he was just my friend, _Chandler_ , you know?"

"Oh you never hear that enough," Chandler rolled his eyes when the two other girls nodded knowingly.

There was another pause. "So Monica, tell us, how is he?" Rachel eventually asked in a lower voice, not letting any doubt on what she was asking.

"I am standing right there."

"So?"

"I know she's loud," Joey said, his mouth still full. He stopped chewing when he noticed the silence and all the eyes turned to him.

"Dude!"

"What? Thin walls. Oh and she agrees a lot with him, if you see what I mean," he added with a dirty grin.

"Joey, we've been over this. Everyone _always_ know what you mean."

He frowned, but shrugged and grinned again, watching them.

"Look, we're not going to talk about our sex life with you," Monica shook her head.

"Why not?" Rachel asked, while Phoebe protested.

"It's okay," Chandler smiled. "She'll tell you everything when I'm not here, don't worry."

"Really?" the girls said in union.

"Well, I know how you work. It's not like I've never told anything to Joe," he shrugged, then regretted talking too much. "I mean..."

"You've talked to Joey about _our_ sex life?" Monica asked.

He made an uncomfortable noise, opening and closing his mouth with his hand mid-air. Clear signs of panicking, in other words. "Thin walls," he stuttered. "He, huh... Well..."

"I'm just teasing you," she said playfully, hitting his shoulder lightly.

He sighed, reassured, fighting the urge to kiss her again. Instead, he played with her hair and turned to his friends for probably more questions.

Before they could ask something, Ross entered, and they all exchanged looks of horror as they had been mentioning Chandler and Monica's sex life seconds before. Chandler dropped his hands instantly.

"Hi Ross!" the couple and Joey said a bit too loudly.

"Well, hey there."

"We were just..."

"Talking!"

"Watching TV!"

"Eating!"

Ross stared at them, then looked at Phoebe and Rachel who had been quiet. They shrugged to show they didn't know why the three looked so uncomfortable – although they totally knew. "We were just wondering if you needed help with your boxes and all?" Phoebe asked more calmly, lying surprisingly well.

"No, it's fine. I've got a call from the museum and I might get my job back, hopefully. I'll just show them I'm feeling better."

"Oh, that's great!" his friends exclaimed as one.

Monica and Chandler exchanged a look and a smile, still close in the armchair. They were glad for Ross, of course, but also glad that he was moving out of apartment 19, even more so now that everyone except him knew. They could hang out in Chandler's bedroom again, without worrying too much about someone interrupting them – which had been hard with two roommates.

As Monica looked back at his brother, who seemed happy, she realized that it would be a matter of days before he knew. The secret wouldn't hold a lot longer now that everyone was aware of their relationship, and she actually felt that he deserved to know. He was miserable but slowly getting over it, with his new apartment and hopefully his job back. She thought they'd wait to know if he had a chance to go back to his work, then would try to tell him about them. She'd talk to Chandler about that when she'd find time. Maybe not soon, because she was still drunk with the words he had told her, and wanted to fully enjoy it.

She suddenly wanted to take his hand and drag him to her bedroom to hug him and tell him how much she really loved him. But she couldn't, not as long as Ross was there. She sighed audibly, relieved that nobody but Chandler noticed. He smiled at her and rubbed her back, his hand hidden from everyone, especially Ross.


	23. TOW Chandler forgets

Chandler had spent a long, tiring day at work and he was glad to be able to be with Monica for the evening. He put his briefcase and coat in his own flat and only took a second to breathe, but he really missed Monica and crossed the hallway quickly. He both loved and loathed that feeling. It was awesome, because he could actually come home to Monica, he was with her, and it had never felt so right. But at the same time he was deadly afraid of what could happen. He was a wreck in relationships, he knew it, everybody knew it, probably Monica more than anyone else.

His thoughts disappeared when Monica walked out of her bedroom, her smile growing as she saw him.

"It's late," she said, walking to him.

"I know, sorry I..."

"I'm glad you're here," she smiled, kissing him.

He was afraid when thinking about their relationship, but every time he was with her, he knew that they were good and that he couldn't pretend not to love her. He needed her in her life, he always had, except now also romantically.

When the door opened suddenly, he pulled away instinctively, pursing his lips, his heart racing in his chest. His friends stopped before they were completely in, frowning.

"Chandler..."

"Yes, very good friend Monica?" Chandler asked with a high-pitched voice, hitting her gently on the shoulder.

"Honey, they know, remember?"

"Oh, right," he laughed nervously. "We don't have to hide anymore. I'll kind of miss it..."

"Really?" Monica asked, putting her arms around Chandler's waist. He kissed her on the forehead as a reflex.

"Nah. All the sneaking around was fun, though."

"We're still in here, you know?" the rest of the group said, smiling and finally coming in to sit on the couch or a chair.

Chandler smiled and followed Monica who let him sit on the armchair, only to sit on him after. As everyone started to talk, Chandler stayed quiet, thinking about how natural and right this felt, with the whole group together, and Monica with him. Well, until Phoebe's story was too good an opportunity to miss a joke, of course. He still was the funny guy here.

* * *

 _Haha! Don't be disappointed that this chapter wasn't about Ross finding out ;) I simply had fun writing it (... And actually wrote it when this fic only had something like 4 chapters)_

 _Oh, wow, that's actually it for this story? I'm going to miss this! I hope everyone enjoyed reading it, as much as I enjoyed writing and sharing it! Thanks to anyone who commented, and those who suggested ideas, and even those who never commented (oh, well, a little review never kills anybody ;D) I'll definitely be back with more Mondler soon, if I ever find time to write, gee, so I hope to see you again :D_


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